My Village Or Moobahn In Chiang Mai Area

[PeaceBlondie]

Trying to get away from food topics,

What is real life like, where you live? Is it a community where you know people? Does it have local schools, a temple, a poo yai baan, a weekly market, a community pool? Do you know its history?

I started off, six years ago, by living in one of Chiang Mai's first high-rise condos - renting my first-ever condo. Neighbors were plentiful. We made a few good friends, but once the pool died, there was no social life.

After moving back to Chiang Mai, we rented a house in an old, fancy subdivision. Almost no social interaction.

Now we're part of a 200-year old Chinese village that must have been very remote originally. Common to see folks using push bikes for local transport. No public transport. Big rice fields. Everybody knows each other; lots of extended families.

How about where you live?

[Fishenough]

Love the night life; and not what you think. When the sun goes down, heck evn around dusk, our Mo Ban comes alive in a peaceful welcoming way. It very idyllic in the same way as the small communites we grew up in; neighnors talk over the fence, sit in their yards, or out, talking with neighbors, many an adult or kid walk or ride bikes around the streets, many adog is walked, and the smell or bbq makes me want to have dinner all over again.

[venturalaw]

Love the night life; and not what you think. When the sun goes down, heck evn around dusk, our Mo Ban comes alive in a peaceful welcoming way. It very idyllic in the same way as the small communites we grew up in; neighnors talk over the fence, sit in their yards, or out, talking with neighbors, many an adult or kid walk or ride bikes around the streets, many adog is walked, and the smell or bbq makes me want to have dinner all over again.

Ditto. Evening brings out joggers, bicyclists, children and dogs. It's really a great way to live. Where I am however, I don't smell the barbecues. That sounds even better!

[elektrified]

I love our moobaan! People are super friendly here. There is no school, temple, swimming pool or poo yai baan (that I'm aware of). There is an old dilapidated tennis court that no one uses. There are two restaurants in the moobaan; one delivers which is convenient. Nearby is the Ruam Chok Market. As far as history is concerned, I am told that our moobaan is the oldest krongan baan in Chiang Mai - about 30 years old. I don't know if that is true or not. There are always people walking, jogging, adults and kids riding their bicycles (me for one), and of course the moobaan dog population making the rounds every day! It's a real community.

[Das65]

No restaurants or anything in the Moo Ban but plenty just outside, during the day very peaceful, the evening same as elsewhere plenty of people walking and playing fussball, My wife and kids take 2

hours to wander around most evenings for a 10 minute walk !!

life is good

[Ulysses G.]

Years ago, I lived in a Thai neighborhood and they would walk into my house whenever they felt like it and got really upset when I started putting a hook on on the door, so they could not get in.

They did take care of me. They wanted to know how much I paid for everything I bought and would bring me back to the shop of anyone in the area who charged me too much and force them to return my money. I really enjoyed it, but, all in all, I much rather live in the Pratu Farang area (Thapae Gate) where I can get whatever I want easily.

Edited June 3, 2009 by Ulysses G.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Note: Can anyone please indicate if by 'moo ban' they mean a 'regular Thai village/community' or a gated commercial housing development?

Sometimes it's obvious from context such as in the original post, but sometimes it isn't.

I live in a gated development but was lucky that there's plenty friendly people around; easy to meet people indeeed often early morning or late afternoon. So many of those commercial developments are just nasty, with 'new' middle class people or migrants living who stick to themselves with zero sense of community.

Edited June 3, 2009 by WinnieTheKhwai

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I really enjoyed it, but, all in all, I much rather live in the Pratu Farang area (Thapae Gate) where I can get whatever I want easily.

Seriously? In the Thapae Area? How easy is it to find Rice Bran Oil and a fire extinguisher in that area? (As an example).. You're far away from Makro and Global House (etc) there.

[Ulysses G.]

Kasems and the housewares and tool shops on Chang Moi cover both of those easily.

[Dustoff]

We are VERY happy where we are here in Ban Wang Tan!

As quiet as one can imagine, lots of TV members now living here, efficient security patroling the streets constantly, very friendly neighbors wandering the streets with their kids and well-behaved dogs, a restaurant that is truly lovely but goes through periods of good/marginal food, tennis courts, on and on..

We kicked around this general area for a few years then rented here and liked it so much that we bought the house. It has been a bit remote but the conveniences are moving closer to us. The new Big-C on Hangdong Rd is just up the street and we are located kinda behind the new Macro just South of the airport. We found a very nice private school for our son just 15 minutes away and are between the Airport Plaza and the new Rimping Market and stuff near Hang Dong.

The most noise we hear are the frogs and birds except for the occasional aircraft on takeoff but, being a long-time pilot, I don't even notice. The community fees are 250B/mo which I find very reasonable indeed and, other than living in the mountains, I couldn't ask for better surroundings.

Thanks for asking! Want to buy some pickled termites...?

[Steve2UK]

I really enjoyed it, but, all in all, I much rather live in the Pratu Farang area (Thapae Gate) where I can get whatever I want easily.

Seriously? In the Thapae Area? How easy is it to find Rice Bran Oil and a fire extinguisher in that area? (As an example).. You're far away from Makro and Global House (etc) there.

Strange question and logic.......... UG beat me to the obvious answer. What a treasure trove Chang Moi is - not to mention Warorot Market at the river end of it. I'm guessing that WTK has never set foot there?

I know at least one CM property agent that cites distance from Tesco Lotus/Carrefour etc in their ads - but that detail has never struck me as a prime reason to choose my location. For those to whom it's crucial, I think maybe there's room to lay out a mini-moobaan in the spacious Makro car park?

For myself, I have an innate aversion to the gated community style of moobaan - but I'm happy for those who are happy with it. I also value my privacy so most village plots (where many houses tend to be cheek-by-jowl) don't do it for me. Very happy in my second year in a rented house with walled garden in a quiet and leafy soi behind Lanna Hospital - and meet many of my assorted (and interesting) neighbours one way and another........as well as local shopkeepers and stallholders.Where I am also works as a community in its own way.

Edited June 3, 2009 by Steve2UK

[Thakkar]

So many of those commercial developments are just nasty, with 'new' middle class people or migrants living who stick to themselves with zero sense of community.

Sadly, I live in one of those. Too late to move out. Neighbors are very cordial (most of them anyway), but mostly keep to themselves.

[tigerbalm]

I live in a Moo Bann (Gated with Security) which has been established for about 8 yrs now, Huge swimming pool totally empty week days full of kids at weekends, mostly fairly middle class Thais live out there lives quite peacefully and very friendly people, but the village and neighboring villages is where it all happens weekly markets Thais riding bicycles every body knows every body and crime seems to be non existent i would imagine if one got broken in to the whole village would be aware of the who did it.

One does not stay in the Moo Bann for entertainment one goes out side walking distance for socialising.

At least one social drinking eating gathering can be attended every week then theres the big anual village party with the huge stage and the dancing girls and the Boxing ring. got to go o 3 this year must be like 200 tables all packed with Thais bottles of sang som or 100 Pipers ice and soda. Amazing.!!

Then theres the numerous amounts of Thai restaurants very close by, the Karaoke bars with 45 now 50 Bht large bottles of Beer, We dont drink small bottles of beer out here for 60 Bht it is big bottles for 45-50 and the girls are truly lovely, you guys in the city are missing some of the delights of Thailand cruising up and down Loy Craw. Believe me all the beauties are out here in the stiks..including lady boys

Then there is the country side beautiful we back on to rice fields and often take to riding bikes around the many miles of twisting turning roads that seem to no matter where you go always come out some not far from home. there are cows yes dairy cows, furniture makers all thriving in the remotest parts, i wonder where a lot of that furniture you see in Ban Twai comes from now i know.

Go to the mini mart and forget your money no problem pay later ..Love it

TB reporting some where in the Doi saket area

Edited June 3, 2009 by tigerbalm

[anonymouse]

For myself, I have an innate aversion to the gated community style of moobaan - but I'm happy for those who are happy with it. I also value my privacy so most village plots (where many houses tend to be cheek-by-jowl) don't do it for me. Very happy in my second year in a rented house with walled garden in a quiet and leafy soi behind Lanna Hospital - and meet many of my assorted (and interesting) neighbours one way and another........as well as local shopkeepers and stallholders.Where I am also works as a community in its own way.

I used to be the same I could never see myself living in a gated complex but once a couple of kids came a long me and the wife decided it would be the best place for them to grow up. Luckily our house is a fair way out of town so we got a decent plot of land for a reasonable amount of money and were in a small complex of a 100 or so house's so it's not to impersonal.

Like another post mentioned we have a swimming pool on the complex which is pretty much empty during week days.

Before that I lived in the wife's village in Sanpatong - wouldn't recommend it, like UG we'd have people wandering in and out at all times of the day, I can't be doing with that

[MonsieurHulot]

Before that I lived in the wife's village in Sanpatong - wouldn't recommend it, like UG we'd have people wandering in and out at all times of the day, I can't be doing with that

Maybe UG had people wandering in and out at all times of the day because he's too friendly

Don't shave, don't smile, play loud Rock 'n Roll or music they don't understand (Tom Waits, Captain Beefheart and Pink Floyd's Ummagumma work wonders), invite some mean looking farang friends once in a while and the neighbours won't piss you out more than a week. Anyway, it worked for me. I've been living in my gf's village for more than 5 years and I can't remember the last time a neighbour dared to enter the house without being invited to do so (I must admit that my in-laws are very nice people who respect my privacy as much as I respect theirs, the problem lied exclusively with non-related neighbours).

I now have a reputation of being unfriendly (and even scary ). Well, that's definitely a reputation to uphold.

[Ulysses G.]

Before that I lived in the wife's village in Sanpatong - wouldn't recommend it, like UG we'd have people wandering in and out at all times of the day, I can't be doing with that

Maybe UG had people wandering in and out at all times of the day because he's too friendly

Too friendly and too open.

I could not speak much Thai back then, but no one in the neighborhood could speak English. Every day, I would head down to Thapae Gate and as I walked down the street, all the old Grandmas would shout out,"Bi tio saew mi?" - which I translated as, "Are you going to look at girls? It really means, Are you going to go have sex with a girl?

I always said yes, and always got a laugh, but it took me months to realize what they were really asking.

Edited June 4, 2009 by Ulysses G.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Strange question and logic.......... UG beat me to the obvious answer. What a treasure trove Chang Moi is - not to mention Warorot Market at the river end of it. I'm guessing that WTK has never set foot there?

You guessed wrong..

There was a time when all there was in chiang mai were those stores and the big market. What a blessing the hypermarkets (and home improvement stores) are, who understand the concept of customer service.

*These days* I don't set foot there, unless perhaps I'm showing tourists around; the big market is kinda scenic at any hour of the day and night.

I know at least one CM property agent that cites distance from Tesco Lotus/Carrefour etc in their ads - but that detail has never struck me as a prime reason to choose my location.

No, but it does give a rough indication on how far away from town you are. 'Town' these days is a big place, at least if you give a distance to a hypermarket then that's a pretty well defined location. I'm 5 minutes from Makro and Big C, depending on traffic light cooperation.

For myself, I have an innate aversion to the gated community style of moobaan - but I'm happy for those who are happy with it. I also value my privacy so most village plots (where many houses tend to be cheek-by-jowl) don't do it for me. Very happy in my second year in a rented house with walled garden in a quiet and leafy soi behind Lanna Hospital - and meet many of my assorted (and interesting) neighbours one way and another........as well as local shopkeepers and stallholders.Where I am also works as a community in its own way.

Believe it or not, I used to feel pretty much the same way. But youknow, kids, etc.. And it's not like you're completely segregated from 'the real Thailand' in a development.. The real Thailand starts right outside the gate, as others have mentioned.